Microsoft sweetens the deal on the newly $299 Xbox 360, offering a $50 rebate on all Elite consoles purchased between now and October 5th.

It's 14 days of savings! Simply purchase an Xbox 360 Elite at the regular price, visit http://www.xbox.com/eliterebate (once it goes live), jump through whatever hoops they require you to jump through in order to qualify, and BAM! - eventually you'll receive a $50 check in the mail, which you'll probably accidentally throw away!

Can you tell I don't have much faith in the rebate system? It's a mechanic based on the fact that many people won't take advantage of the offer, or won't follow instructions properly. Perhaps I am just bitter that my own instruction-following skills are so lacking. Perhaps I just hate checks.